Halloween with Great Grandpa Mel!

Hard to get a great picture after dark, but this is pretty good! Greatgrandpa Mel gives Queen Bee Maya her Halloween candy, while Deanna looks on! Maya was in a hurry to move on to the next house!

Fall with Maya & CJ

Blacksmith Mechanical

A new custom mechanical design for a friend. Not sure where the picture went, but below is the video!

New Creation

New "Balancing Act".
"You haven't seen a tree until you've seen its shadow from the sky."
Amelia Earhart
Video below!

65?

To quote my granddaughter - "That's a lot!"

Thanks to the powers that be, and to all my family and friends for getting me here!

Wedding of Susie Shannon and Tyler Hares

It was great fun creating this one-of-a-kind gift for Susie and Tyler. I've known Susie since she was a little kid, and celebrating the next generation is an honor! Move the heart back and forth, and the new couple kisses! Not sure how the video will look, but click below.

Stuff we made!

Our pieces don't often get framed, but these did! Thanks to the customer who sent us this picture!

A cool find related to my Spin Top interests!

Flat earth!

Looks pretty good until you google W. G. (Wilbur Glenn) Voliva -- the name in the lower right corner of the photo.
From Wikipedia --

Voliva was born on a farm in Indiana on Mar. 10, 1870. In 1889, he entered Union Christian College in Mermon Indiana; he graduated five years later and became a minister. In 1898 he was drawn to the teachings of John Alexander Dowie and eventually joined his congregation, the Christian Catholic Church of Zion, Illinois.

In 1906, the congregation revolted against Dowie's leadership and elected Voliva head of the church, which Voliva then renamed to the "Christian Catholic Apostolic Church." He kept tight control on his some 6,000 followers, which made up the community, even up to the point of dictating their choice of marriage partners. The city of Zion was effectively controlled by the church; all of its real estate, while sold at market rates, was conveyed under an 1,100 year lease, subject to many restrictions and subject to termination at the whim of the General Overseer. Religions other than the Christian Catholic Apostolic Church were effectively banned - visiting preachers from rival sects were harassed and hounded out of town by the city police force. The police force evidently carried bibles in their belt along with their billy clubs?

Voliva diversified Zion Industries, an industrial concern owned by the church that manufactured Scottish lace, to include a bakery which produced the popular Zion brand fig bar cookies and White Dove chocolates. Zion was a one-company town and its workers were paid substandard wages.

He was also a firm believer in the Flat Earth theory. Check out this article from the October 1931 Modern Mechanix. Not bad on the smoking thing though! Having one good idea does not make all your ideas good!